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Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Noms in Asia 6: Tim's Kitchen in Hong Kong

Before I get into talking about the food, let me just say that Hong Kong was amazing — I loved every second of my time there. Not only is the food fantastic, but the city is also beautiful and packed with incredible sights and lots of culture. I also got a taste of the nightlife in Lan Kwai Fong, and from what I saw for the few hours I was out that night, Hong Kongians (?) can PARTY.

Anyway, my parents and I arrived at Hong Kong on Christmas day and met up with my brother, who works and lives in the city, at Hong Kong Station. After looking around the IFC Mall and the general area a bit, my brother took us out to Tim's Kitchen, where I got my first taste of traditional Cantonese food.

Tim's Kitchen seemed like a slightly upscale restaurant as it was very clean, well-decorated and quiet (which was nice), and some of the dishes, like shark's fin, snake (o_o) and abalone, were really expensive.

We stuck with the more classic dishes that Tim's Kitchen is famous for, according to my brother, and were very pleased with our choices.

Apparently, Tim's Kitchen is known for exactly these pork dishes, so we wanted to give them a go. I can't decide which I liked better as both were very good. The pork itself was very tender and flavorful, with just the right amount of fat to keep the slices yummy but not too greasy.

The honey-glazed barbeque had, of course, a sweet sauce to accompany the tender pork, and the roasted pork belly was lightly fried to a salty, crisp finish. Having both kinds was a great idea as the opposing flavors really balanced each other out. Braised scallop and crabmeat soup with cream corn (HKD $320 — USD $41.27)

I think this was my favorite out of the bunch. Although quite expensive for a bowl of soup (though it did serve four people), this dish was not only delicious but also packed with scallops, crabmeat and corn. It was like an egg-drop soup, which is probably one of my favorite soups ever, with tons of fresh and meaty seafood — no complaints here, none whatsoever.Sauteed shrimp with bell pepper and olive ($170 — USD $21.92)

This dish was probably the most similar to what you can find in traditional Americanized Chinese food, except a lot less greasy and more high-quality.The shrimp was plump and succulent, and the olive oil and garlic-based sauce went very well with the bell peppers.

Sauteed seasonal vegetables with black mushrooms ($80 — USD $10.32)

I decided that the name of this dish was a bit misleading because it makes it seem like there are several different kinds of vegetables, but really, it was just bok choy and mushrooms. I loved the sauce that went with it — I think this one was garlic-based as well — and the bok choy was fresh, but the overall dish wasn't anything amazing. We only ordered it for a side that would kind of work as a palate cleanser anyway, but, of course, it would've been nice if it tasted really good too.

All in all, Tim's Kitchen was a very good start to our vacation in Hong Kong — and it only got better!